


Empty

by ivanthesilent



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Blood and Injury, Clay | Dream-centric (Video Blogging RPF), Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Isolation, Pandora's Vault, Prison, Self-Harm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-14 22:08:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28927827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ivanthesilent/pseuds/ivanthesilent
Summary: Dream isn't doing so well in prison.
Relationships: Cara | CaptainPuffy & Clay | Dream, Clay | Dream & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF)
Comments: 48
Kudos: 900





	1. Chapter 1

Empty. That was how they felt. The sight in the small obsidian cell was saddening, Dream had been told that so many times before. He was stuck in a stupid body that he only intended to use as a way to keep him safe. It was torn, burned, cut up. It hurt to possess, but they couldn’t stay in the mask, no one let them. 

So this body was his new home, and so was the cell. Under the layers of lava and obsidian. Beneath the walls of guardians and redstone. He was abandoned with books and a clock. Abandoned was an odd word to use, people still visited Dream, but no one cared about him anymore, he was done to them. They could visit them once and then never need to again, they're pretty much useless to the person after that. 

Dream knew they deserved this, after everything they did, locking them up was expected. But even then, it was torture. All he could do in the stupid place was write. That’s all he was left with. They didn't know how long they would be there, nor how long it would take for the books to fill up. Would Sam even give him more, or would the creeper’s patience run out and leave him to rot?

There was other stuff for sure. They could listen to the clock, maybe spin it around a bit. There was lava right in front of him, he could see how long he could last in the burning liquid. They knew it wouldn’t be enough to make it past, but it was still something to do. At least it wasn’t just standing still and doing nothing. 

And yet, Dream eventually did all of that. He filled up half of his books, he stared at the clock for hours. It’s spinning was tiring after a while, the ticking drove into his head until it hurt to listen to. He swam in the lava until it started showing burns even after his casual respawns, his hands covered in painful burn marks. They stood still for hours, maybe full days, their head drained of any thought as they looked at either the lava or the clock. It was a cycle of all of it, the whole time they just tried to pass the time while they were alone.

Dream couldn’t even sleep, the obsidian was rough to even sit on. It’s not like the texture was the only thing stopping him though, he couldn’t rest, he didn’t know why. The idea of sleep seemed so distant to them, they wished they had tried to sleep before they had been imprisoned. 

He couldn’t even tell how long it had been. Tommy would tell him that he’d be back in two days, but Dream couldn’t tell what that meant. The clock could tell him whether it was day or night, but all he could focus on was the ticking coming from it, and that didn’t do anything to help. 

The situation just worsened the more time passed. Dream found some kind of warmth in touching the lava, barely even affecting him anymore. Their hand started shaking when they tried to write, they kept brushing their hair with their nails like something was there, but there was nothing, there was always nothing. 

Tommy visited him less and less, their meetings more brief than the last. Dream couldn’t blame him, but he just missed seeing the kid. He couldn’t care about him though, he couldn’t. It was weak to care about him like was a brother, it was weak to miss messing around with him like they used to. It’s not like Tommy would believe him anyway, no one would, he wasted the chance to make people think that. 

Dream assumed Tommy was scared of him when he finally saw the small twitches with each tick of the clock, whether it was in his hands, his head, or his voice. Their voice though wasn’t going to last long. He could feel it slowly giving out the less he used it. That was when Tommy stopped visiting them, when he asked for the book Schlatt had given them to bring people back to life. 

Finally, he had access to an ender chest, one that Tommy had brought over so he could get it. They had done something special, letting Tommy take the bridge back so he didn’t have to die to return back over the lava. They did this so Tommy could have items, an ender chest and an axe if Dream tried attacking him.

But they didn’t. Dream got out the book and gave it to Tommy peacefully, saying nothing. There were no protests, no bargains, just silence as Tommy gained the book from the broken person. Dream could’ve just gotten something from the chest, a weapon maybe. They both had one life, so it would be easy to just end Tommy’s last one, it would be so simple.

Tommy’s alive though, and with that book, he’d stay alive for a while if he wanted to. Dream was expecting Tommy to kill him after getting what he wanted, but he just left. Dream was still alive, with nothing they could use to save themself now. 

This was just torture now. He was living for nothing, other than to stay in obsidian walls surrounded by lava. He didn’t know how long he had stayed there, and Tommy never saw him again. They were abandoned, thrown away, cast aside to just go insane in isolation. 

Eventually the clock laid broken on the floor, stopping the ticks, even if the small twitches remained. The books were filled up with random shaky writing, telling nothing other than the fact that the author was long gone mentally. The obsidian had scratch marks on it, as well as a bit of blood from Dream’s hands. The bandaging on his head was discarded, showing the deep cut that ran through his hair when Tommy killed him. 

Tear marks stained his face, his previous main position of sitting down now replaced with laying down. The stone cut at his back, though it paled in comparison to his nails clawing at his own skin. The only indication of how much time had passed was how much their hair had grown since they’d been in there. No one was going to visit them, everyone probably forgot them at that point. Sam didn’t see him for a while either, if he did he’d probably be concerned for how his prisoner had been doing. 

But no one saw it, no one cared anymore. Dream did though, he wanted to see his friends, he wanted to see his brother, his mom. He missed his husband and child. They didn’t even know if the plan worked, if everyone was a happy family minus them. He could only hope that maybe they were having fun, but he heard nothing. No one saw them, no one cared anymore. 

They felt empty, and they didn’t know when it would end.


	2. Help

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tommy finally visits Dream

Tommy sighed as he looked at the lava in front of him, waiting patiently for it to descend. He tried no jokes with Sam, he couldn’t. The warden was fine with that, even if he did almost miss hearing the kid go on about something. They couldn’t be joking now though, not with what’s going on.

It had been almost two months since anyone had visited Dream. Everyone so far had been brought back from the dead. Wilbur was starting his life again and reunited with his son. They’re doing fine now, Wilbur wants to find Sally. Schlatt is back, and he’s surprisingly tame now, he seems pretty fun to be around now. 

Tommy was even able to give people more lives, saving himself, Tubbo, Phil, and Quackity from being stuck on only one life. Schlatt wanted the book back, but Tommy just kept it for himself whenever he needed it. He was glad the ram hybrid didn’t mind. It was actually nice having him around when he wasn’t being a tyrant, him and Wilbur seemed to become friends in the afterlife. 

Everyone seemed to be fine. Of course there was some attempted murder with Niki and Jack, but that was evetually solved with Puffy’s help. She really wanted everyone to get therapy, and no one wanted to deny that. Even Fundy soon caved and let himself get help from the sheep. It was peaceful outside.

Which left Dream. Who was still imprisoned. No one had seen him, no one knew what he was like now. Some people believed he was still just as manipulative as before, others thought that he might have calmed down. There wasn’t a single person that wanted them free though, they all thought he should stay in there. 

All of that depended on what he was like though. Puffy didn’t think that it was healthy for him to be in there, but everyone thought it was fine for what he did to everyone. Tommy thought it was equal to his exile at first, but after seeing Dream slowly deteriorate in there, he was beginning to see how that comparison failed. It scared him to see what they looked like after leaving them for months. 

Tommy watched the lava fall to reveal the other side. Him and Sam watched the room come into view. They could just barely see the scattered books on the ground, near them was Dream themself, who was still on the ground for a second, moving once the room’s source of light was replaced. 

Dream’s eyes met Tommy’s as they looked up, who felt his stomach drop as he saw them. He knew those eyes, he had them when he was in exile. But it didn’t look like Dream understood what he felt during it. They’re eyes weren’t losing their color, they were dulling to white. Dream was experiencing something completely different. 

Tommy looked back to Sam, waiting for him to stop looking at his old friend so he could tell him to let him cross. The creeper sighed as he focused back to Tommy, who simply nodded. Sam shook his head as he tried to shove his thoughts away, going to let Tommy cross to the other side. 

The small netherite wall came up as the bridge went across the lava. Dream backed up against the obsidian wall, his body curled up like he couldn’t straighten his back unless he was laying down. Tommy stepped on the obsidian, waiting for the netherite to come down. He looked at Dream with a shaky breath, they seemed scared of him. Tommy sighed as he heard the bridge go back, he was stuck with Dream again.

Sam let the lava come down again, encasing the two with the orange light. The netherite went back down, only making Dream sink further against the wall. Tommy looked at the ground around him, his breath stopping for a second seeing the shattered clock on the floor, it didn’t get any better seeing Dream still twitching despite the lack of sound. 

The books weren’t any better, filled with just random words. One was just filled with the word “why” from top to bottom on every page. Another had small references to people in his life. His mom, someone named “Robin” that Tommy didn’t know. There was one part that just had “I do” written a few times. 

Tommy looked back to Dream. He was a wreck. Their hair was down, whatever tied it before gone. It tried to cover his now visible head scar, the one that Tommy made with his own axe. Cuts were all over his face, tracks ran down his cheeks as remnants of tears. They had burns on their hands from the lava, some looking new. 

The sight wasn’t saddening anymore, it was painful. Tommy hated Dream at this point. He was used by them and manipulated by them. Dream had hurt so many people, people were traumatized because of him. But Tommy couldn’t help but feel horrible for them now.

Dream was broken at this point. Any life in his eyes was gone, and any sense of sanity was destroyed. Tommy knew Dream was toxic to him during his exile, but he could move at least. Dream was stuck in one place, with one thing to do. Everything else he had was dangerous to his health, but it looks like with what little had, there was no choice but to do them.

Tommy really did miss Dream being his friend, and seeing them look scared of him while being this ruined was almost heartbreaking. Out of all the things people expected from Dream, this wasn’t one of them. It was way worse. Dream was horrible to them, but this didn’t even look like punishment at this point. It was torture, and Dream had suffered enough.

“Hey Dream,” Tommy greeted. Dream didn't say anything, only looking away from the kid, their hands playing with their hair, brushing through it gently, “I’m assuming you’ve been punished enough for what you did to everyone. I can tell that with how horrible you look.”

“It hurts,” Dream mumbled. Tommy sighed as he looked at him, his gaze going to the scratched walls, he flinched seeing the blood on them. That explained the scars on the inside of his arms. 

“I know. That’s why I’m letting you go,” Tommy said softly. Dream seemed confused as he looked up at him, his eyes oddly gentle, the kind of look that even he couldn’t fake, “Puffy wants to give you some help. Sapnap gave us some information about how your mental state was, and Puffy doesn’t feel like this’ll make anything better. The original plan was to put you in a more tame cell, but I don’t think you need anymore prison time.”

“No,” Dream breathed out. Tommy stuttered on his words as he looked at them. He thought he would want to leave this place, “I belong here, everyone told me that. They’re all happy with me gone, you said it yourself.”

“You can’t just stay here, Dream,” Tommy said. He didn’t know why he was even bothering to help him, but there was something inside him that saw himself in exile when he looked at Dream, and it hurt. If he stayed here for a few days, it would be fine, but it’s been months.

“I’m not leaving, this is the only place I’m meant to be and we both know it,” Dream said, his voice raising a bit. Tommy tensed hearing it, “I think you should leave.”

“No way, if I’m leaving, you’re coming with me!” Tommy yelled. He wasn’t letting Dream tell him what to do again, even if it was going to hurt themself, “I am not letting you spend any longer here, you’re not in charge anymore, I am!”

“You’re such an idiot Tommy, you’re pathetic! I hurt all of you and you’re just letting me go!” Dream yelled. Tommy breathed out sharply as he grabbed Dream’s arm, pulling him away from the wall. Dream couldn’t even fight back, he didn’t have the strength anymore.

“I’m not letting you go, I’m letting you get fucking help,” Tommy argued. Dream just glared at the kid. Tommy just let it go through him. Dream eventually slipped as he started tearing up, falling down as he grabbed at his face, trying to hide it as he broke down, “You need help Dream. You need it just as much as the rest of us.”

“Why don’t you just take my final life right now? No one would care. Everyone abandoned me already,” Dream choked out. Tommy sighed as his grip on Dream’s wrist loosened a bit. 

“Because everyone misses the Dream from before, and no one can be that but you,” Tommy said. Dream looked up at Tommy, his hand still wiping at his face, “I miss when you were nice to me, and I’m done with just missing. You’re going to become a better person, whether you like it or not.”

Dream was silent as he went back to his former position, still silently crying into his hand. Tommy called for Sam to let them out, waiting for the lava to drop. He looked back to Dream, letting go his grip on his wrist gently as he looked to see another book. Every other one was almost horrifying to see, but this one, it was just sad. 

Tommy picked up the book, flipping through the pages of “I’m sorry”s. All of them were full of it, from top to bottom with barely any spaces. The handwriting got worse the more Tommy saw, starting with light shaking of the letters, going all the way to being completely unreadable. Tommy closed the book, letting it drop out of his hands. He looked around the room again, taking in all of the scratches and blood on the walls, as well as the thrown around books and broken clock, his eyes then falling to Dream, who just stared at him with those same white-dulled eyes. 

“This is worse than killing you. You’re not even the person who deserved to get locked up anymore. You’re just a shell of them,” Tommy mumbled. Dream just curled back up as he clawed at the obsidian floor again. They stopped when Tommy grabbed their arm, keeping their hand from getting more cut up. Dream just sighed in defeat, “You’re leaving, and I’m not listening to you just so you can have the feeling of telling people what to do again.”

Dream was still silent. The lava eventually came down. Tommy looked to the other side, seeing Sam looking at the two. He gave a small thumbs up for him to let them pass. Sam just nodded as he sent the bridge over again. Tommy pulled on Dream, trying to get him to move. They were shaking a bit though, they probably couldn’t even stand. 

Tommy sighed as he kneeled down to lift the person up. It was scarily easy, Dream couldn’t have been this easy to lift up before they were in prison. Tommy looked back to the cell, he’d get Dream’s books later, for now he just needed to get Dream somewhere away from this place. Sam brought back the bridge as he waited for the two, looking at his old friend silently. He expressed more emotion that Tommy had ever seen when he was here.

Tommy made it onto the other side as Sam went to put back the lava, it seemed like just a reflex. Dream still kept quiet, now unresponsive to anything. Sam came back to the two, gesturing to carry Dream himself. Tommy let the mob take him, it was probably easier for him to carry him with his stature. 

Dream was still unresponsive, he was alive, but he looked numb. He stared at nothing, his eyes seemed to look more pale than before. It didn’t seem odd to them either, like they did this all the time. It was probably one of the only ways they could pass the time. Tommy just breathed out as he tried to ignore the feeling Dream’s effect gave him. He hated how much the state Dream was in reminded him of himself in exile. He wanted Dream to learn their lesson, not become whatever this was.

Sam gave a small nudge to Tommy’s shoulder, gesturing for the kid to follow him back outside the prison. Tommy sighed as he looked away from Dream, letting Sam lead him the easy way out. He was going to get the Dream from before back, they had been punished enough. Now he just needed help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> angst pog


	3. Mother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Puffy talks to her troubled child

Puffy stood over the table in front of her as she bandaged up Dream. He still wasn’t unconscious, but with how still he was, it could be called that. The sight of it didn’t make Puffy any less tense. It’s not like anyone could blame her. It had been months since she had seen her kid, and they were just laying there with no expression and covered in scars. 

Out of the people who actually somewhat missed Dream, she was the most willing to admit it. Dream was fucked up, both in his actions and in his head. Sapnap already knew they were a bit unstable, and he expressed regret in not stopping them. Despite what he did, keeping Dream in there for months wasn’t going to solve anything. He wasn’t a threat, sure, but he wasn’t even recognizable anymore.

Puffy cared about the kids there, but they knew she wasn’t going to let it down how Tommy should have at least put him out of his misery after getting the book. He knew he deserved that criticism. Tommy didn’t know why he kept Dream alive after that, maybe he just didn’t want to end them there and wait until he was ready. But that day never came for two months. 

Eventually everyone else left Punz’s house, where they all met to see Dream. Puffy wanted to show everyone what happened. No one was able to fully understand what Tommy went through at first, and she wasn’t going to let that happen again to Dream. The prison was a good way to lock up people, but it wasn’t good for Dream, they couldn’t handle that for that long. 

The group did miss who Dream was, and they still knew that the person there was him, even if he changed. They were torn up and driven to insanity with nothing gained except for abandonment issues, but it was still Dream. He was still there, past all the fucked up things that plagued his head.

Puffy looked around to the empty room when she was done. Tommy was the last to leave, being picked up by Sam to go work on something. Puffy just let out a sigh as she turned back to her kid, who continued being still. She managed to bandage up his eye, which was still bruised a bit from Tommy. It didn’t look as bad as before, but Dream still seemed to flinch a bit when it was touched. His arms were covered in wrappings, covering up all the scars that had breached his skin. Some were small, but others went deep, and based on what their nails looked like, those seemed to be from themself. 

Dream didn’t do anything ever since he came out of the prison, he looked at nothing and didn’t react to anything at all. It scared Puffy. Not in a way that she felt fear of them being dangerous, but it was more of a concerned mother with an ill child. Dream did horrible things, but they were still her little duckling, and she wanted them to get better. He used to be a better person, Sapnap and George told her that, he was a better person that eventually broke down into the monster that was locked in Pandora’s Vault. 

Puffy lifted Dream into her arms a bit, though some of his weight was still on the table. They barely reacted to it, but they did lean on her slightly. Puffy played with her kid’s hair, brushing it with her fingers. Dream was shaking a bit now. 

“I’m sorry duckling. I should have tried to convince people to let you out after you gave up the book. I heard how Tommy described you and I should have told him to do something then,” Puffy mumbled. Dream didn’t move, the only thing Puffy could hear was their breathing, which had a soft wheeze, “I’m going to help you, alright? We’re going to make this server better, and it’ll include you.”

Dream’s breathing went quiet, leaving nothing audible to prove that he was still alive. Puffy looked down at them with worry. Dream’s eyes were still open, but they looked more vibrant. Not by much, but he looked awake at least. The small twitching resumed a bit as well. Puffy continued messing with Dream’s hair, it had gotten pretty long, though she couldn’t tell how much it had grown since it was rare to see them with it down before. 

Dream had always had themself so well kept, keeping their hair in a bun, sometimes under a hood. His armor was always on, constantly clean and fixed up. His cloak was never torn and all his skin cuts were hidden nicely. Now he had cuts all over, visible with his skin. They had no armor, only a black shirt and pants. Their hair was down as well, reaching their mid-back easily. He was a mess now, Puffy just hoped she could help. 

Dream started moving a bit, finally doing something for the first time in almost an hour. They looked up a bit, finally looking at his adopted mother. Puffy smiled at him gently, putting more of his weight in her arms. 

“Mom? I’m tired, mom,” Dream mumbled. Puffy sighed finally hearing him talk. She pulled them closer into a hug, which they surprisingly leaned into, “I want to go back to the prison, it’s calm there.”

“No, you’re not going back in that room ever again,” Puffy stated, “That place broke you Dream, it made you worse. Sure, you’re not a bad person anymore, but at some point it was just excessive.”

“I did horrible stuff though. That prison is the only place that accepted me,” Dream said, his voice cracking a bit, “I was a terrible friend, partner, and kid.”

“You were, but we’re going to help you with that, alright?” Puffy pulled back a bit, looking back at Dream. They still had that slight twitching, though it seemed to be more tame with more noise other than lava and a clock. 

Dream started playing with Puffy’s coat, messing with the buttons a bit as he looked around. It almost resembled the way a cat would look around in your arms, though with how long it had been since he had seen the outside, that was understandable. Puffy smiled at him gently. She missed this, she missed seeing her kid not be some dominating force akin to a god. They were her little duckling.

“I wanna go home, mom,” Dream said quietly. Puffy gave a small nod as she lifted Dream up, going to take him back to where her house. They didn’t really have one anymore, so she could at least offer that. Dream went back to being quiet, just hanging into Puffy’s jacket. 

She didn’t know why Dream was so scared of being controlled with his attachments, and a part of her was worried about hearing the reason. But if it would help them, then it would be worth it in the end. Puffy wanted to save her kid, she knew they had lived a while, and it sounded like they never really got any help in that time. She wanted to be the first to help him, just like mom should be, the mom Dream should have always had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this is becoming and actual series thing. I don't mind it at all, I just didn't expect it.


	4. Lava

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream goes into the Nether

Dream leaned on the portal as he waited for Puffy to come back. She had gone to grab something, promising to come back quick. Dream was fine in the dimension by himself, though he was feeling really lonely without Puffy’s company. She wouldn’t be gone for long, she wasn’t going to leave her duckling in an environment like that for a while. She just needed to grab some blocks and she’d be back. 

It wasn’t like Dream didn’t believe her. They knew she cared about them, she would be back soon, and they could do what they needed. He couldn’t go back through to wait, going through portals was too strong for him to handle, so making him go through it a few times wouldn’t be good. 

Dream was fine in the Nether though. Puffy was worried that he might not like it because of his cell, but Dream actually liked how it reminded him of it. They had heard from everyone that they shouldn’t miss the prison. They had just spent so long in there that they grew to like it. It was his only home for a while, something he needed after destroying his old one.   
Boredom began to settle in as a minute passed. Dream lightly clawed at his hand as he tried to distract himself with something else. They tried to focus on the sounds of the Nether, but it didn’t do much. Dream just dug his nails into his hand a bit as he continued waiting for Puffy. 

She wouldn’t leave him, she was going to be back soon. Dream forgot how long it had been since she left, they’ve been losing track of time a lot. The obsidian scratched their back as they slid down the portal entrance, curling up into a ball on the ground. Puffy was going to be back soon, she didn’t forget him. 

Dream felt himself panic a bit as he grew more bored. They liked the prison, but the first feelings they had in it were hell. He didn’t want to experience them again, he liked being numb in there better. But that didn’t seem to be the case now. 

Before Dream could only be described as a ghost, not even recognizable as the person the SMP knew before. That was fine to them, being that empty made everything hurt less. But no one wanted them to be like that, they wanted them to feel stuff and actually seem like they were alive. Dream appreciated it then, but not now. 

After a while in the prison, they could just turn themself off when they were bored. It wasn’t used as much before then. Dream had loved a long time, so there were points where he just spent a while being inactive and waiting for something to happen. Only after being in the prison he was able to do it often. Being out of it made them lose that power though, so they had to do something else to distract themself.

Dream shakily stood up as he looked at the lake of lava below the platform. It was just like their first month in the prison, just without the clock or books. With those gone, there was just one other way that he distracted himself. 

Even if he couldn’t feel himself go numb, Dream definitely wasn’t thinking straight as he walked towards the edge. They didn’t see anything wrong with it, they did this in the prison all the time. The only difference was that getting out of it would be more difficult. It would distract him though, that’s what he needed. Just a distraction to get past the aching boredom. 

Dream lightly kicked at the edge of the path, watching the pieces of the bricks fall in the lava. They let one heel drop off of the ground, leaving one keeping them from falling in. Dream sighed as they looked down at it. This seemed oddly familiar. It felt ironic, but they weren’t in the right state to remember why. 

The next three seconds felt fast. First starting with Dream letting himself start to slip into the lava. The next second he felt a harsh tug to his jacket, pulling him back to the path so he wouldn’t fall in. The last one, they thought they would fall onto the hard stone, but instead they were caught in a familiar embrace that held him away from any edges. It was quiet after that, the air sounding with soft concerned cries from his mother. 

“Dream what the hell were you doing!?” Puffy pulled away from Dream a bit, looking down at her pale looking kid. Dream looked away from her, instead focusing on the edge. Puffy kept brushing her hand through their hair, watching him start to calm down a bit, “What happened?”

“I got bored,” Dream mumbled. Puffy breathed out nervously as she kept holding her kid. She saw the burn marks on him, but it didn’t dawn on her what exactly happened in that cell. The realization never hit her until then, and she wished it did before she decided to bring him to the Nether.

“You’re not going here again, alright?” Puffy said. Dream just nodded as he leaned against his mom. They never told her about it directly, she just thought that they were old scars, “I’ll just get the supplies by myself, you can wait at home duckling.”

Puffy lifted up Dream in her arms, it got easy with how small he had gotten. Dream wasn’t as intense of a shapeshifter, but they did have those abilities for some things. Puffy wasn’t sure if it was a good or a bad thing that Dream’s height was decreasing. At least holding him was easier. 

Dream didn’t move as Puffy carried them back to the portal. They weren’t in that state again, they were just silent. Puffy mentally hit herself as she looked at his state. She should have never let Dream go there. He seemed perfectly fine though, he just got bored and found other ways to distract himself. Puffy noted that. 

They just need to be kept entertained in a positive way. Dream was easy to put habits on in this state, so getting him healthy ways to do things shouldn’t be that hard. Puffy wasn’t a fan of how much of a shell they were now, but if it could help them in some way, fixing it could wait. Puffy just wanted her duckling back.


	5. Nightmares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream still has troubles in the form of nightmares

It was dark. It was dark and warm all around. The ground was even hotter, burning whatever touched it without mercy. Dream felt the numb feeling of fatigue wash over him again. It didn’t feel the same though, a fake recreation of some sort. It didn’t feel any better though, The cuts on their hands from the obsidian felt odd. It wasn’t pain, just buzzing. Dream didn’t like it.

Looking up, Dream realized that the room was smaller, way smaller. There was barely any room now. No clock, no books, just obsidian with the wall of lava. Dream curled up against the wall across the lava, trying to keep away from it. The lava was bad, he remembered that from his friends. But he still was bored. There was nothing in his inventory, nothing he could use to distract himself. 

Dream refused to use it though, they weren’t going to. Everyone told them it wasn’t healthy. They know better than him, Dream has learned that. The lava wasn’t safe, it was going to hurt him. Puffy would be proud of him for learning that, and that was all he really needed. 

It was calm, but only for a few seconds more. Because something moved obsidian under the lava in front of him, and that lava started to pour into the small room. Dream shot up, but immediately regretted it when he felt his body crumble at the sudden movement. They couldn’t do anything, they were helpless. This wasn’t the outside, this was the prison, he was useless and weak in there.

Dream pushed himself against the wall as the lava started pooling at his legs. The pain felt worse, but they couldn’t do anything. For the first time in a few days, he started sobbing. Just like that he had lost a streak of not tearing up. The information was almost shoved in his face because every time a tear fell, it created small pieces of obsidian in the lava. They didn’t like the lava anymore.

But he didn’t have a say in that, slipping on nothing and falling down into it. Everything burned, but getting up wasn’t even a possibility anymore. The lava was way too heavy, and his body was fatigued to the point of no return. All Dream could do was bury their face into their arms and claw at the sharp obsidian below them.

Then it stopped.

Dream was in the same position, he was still crying, he was still clawing. But it was on a bed, and it was cold. Dream got up, he was less weak than he thought he would be. There was no obsidian, there was no lava. He was in a house, a bedroom. They had just fallen asleep. 

Dream laid on his back this time, looking up at the ceiling. He still cried, at least he had set a record of the most he had gone without at least tearing up. Even if it was just a few days. They were safe though, there were no new burns, no new cuts. They just had a nightmare. 

No one was around in the new house. He assumed it was new, he’d never seen it. It had some stuff around the room though. Some pictures of his friends, a few books, it looked nice. Dream didn’t recognize it, but it was probably made for him. The last thing he remembered was walking on the Prime Path with Eret, both of them talking about her kingship. They don’t remember much after that though, meaning they probably fell asleep. 

They looked at the desk beside them, on it was a new communicator. Dream had gotten theirs confiscated by Sam when they got locked up. There was also a new mask. This one didn’t have any dreamon possessing it, it was just a mask with straps that he could use to tie it on his head. Dream picked up the two objects, revealing two small notes under them. 

“Hey! I know we never formally met, but I heard that Puffy also adopted you. She actually did before she met me. I guess that means we’re kinda like siblings now. So I made you a new place to say. Feel free to talk when you want to” - FoolishG

“I know you probably want a mask, and while I’d say that you should try and move on, I can understand why you’d like it. Tubbo said that the dreamon possessing the one you had before didn’t want to talk to you yet, so I got you a new one. I also got you a communicator, so you can talk to anyone you want without going far. If you have any problems, just tell me” - Capt. Puffy. 

Dream sighed as they looked at the room. Puffy adopted someone else while he was in prison. He was fine with that, it just felt odd. The person seemed really nice though, Dream actually recognized the name from somewhere. They didn’t know where they heard it, but it had something to do with totems. 

The bedroom looked nice though, it was simple but also felt really soft. He liked it better than the cell. There were probably other rooms, too, they couldn’t wait to see those. Dream couldn’t at the moment though, he really didn’t want to get up for a while. 

It had been so long since he had slept, and the first time he did he had a nightmare. They weren’t being convinced it was a good thing. But Dream knew that everyone would want him to get some rest, so he just had to hope that every sleep wasn’t plagued with nightmares. 

Dream put the communicator in his inventory, which felt nice after so long of not having it. They looked at the mask in their lap. It looked similar to the one they used to possess, though this one was definitely new. It wasn’t made out of porcelain, instead being quartz. On the sides were leather straps, which were new to Dream. The mask never needed them, it just hovered. The mask still had the same smile though, that was unchanging.

Breathing out, Dream lifted up the mask to his face. After securing it around their head, they looked up. It felt nice to have it on again. It didn’t feel the same, but it felt oddly better. Dream liked being the person wearing the mask, they liked having the leather strapped around their head. There were some odd things, like how he had to see through it with an enchantment, making it so his vision was slightly purple sometimes. But they could get used to that.

Dream pulled out his communicator to talk to Puffy. One reason was to thank their mom for the mask, another was to tell her about the nightmare they had.

**Author's Note:**

> I just want this so bad, I think it'd be interesting


End file.
